DV8000t 2nd Hard drive and Audio Questions

Hi all!

A few questions for the DV8000 owners out there.

1. Can you add a second internal hard drive to the laptop if you have purchased it with only one installed? Presumably the space for the second drive is empty. Is the necessary adaptor in place, or must it be ordered seperately?

2. Can you choose which drive to boot from in the bios?

3. Is the audio out port an SPDIF or some other digital out?

The info I received from HP via telephone was hopeless, and their online brochure etc is thin on details. In Australia we can't configure a purchase, we just get a choice of 3 DV8xxx models configured by HP in their wisdom?!

Cheers!

 

I don't have mine yet
But from the research I've done the dv8000t (dv8000z, etc)

1: Hard drive controller is there, just add a drive.
2: You can choose which drive to boot.
3: Not sure, saw, read about some kind of adapter plug.


Model dv8000t (or whatever they call it down-under

I just got the below for $1,401.99 shipped with tax _$50 rebate from HP. Once I get it I will install 2 gig ram ($147 shipped)... So total cost less than $1,500 from www.Costco.com


Note on the below that I opted for the higher spec'd screen. (1680x1050). Ordered the biggest hd they have, going to add, upgrade to a second time as the "need" to do so dictates. Since hard drives come down in price everyday I fiqure a year or two from now I'll be able to buy a 250 gig for the same price as a 100 gig.

Also note this model uses SATA which reduces the loading on the CPU over a regular ATA drive. And the ram is DDR-2 which is faster and uses less power than DDR-(1) ram that some models use.

HP Pavilion dv8000t CTO (custom order thru Costco -about $200- 300 cheaper than ordering it directly thru HP)

Intel(R) Core(TM) Duo processor T2500 (2.0 GHz)
512MB DDR2 SDRAM (2x256MB)
100 GB 5400 RPM SATA Hard Drive
LightScribe 8x DVD+/-RW&CD-RW Combo w/Double Layer
256MB NVIDIA(R) GeForce(R) Go 7400
Intel(R) PRO/Wireless 3945ABG Network w/Bluetooth
17.0" WSXGA+ BrightView Widescreen (1680x1050)
Microsoft(R) Windows(R) XP Home Edition with SP2
Microsoft(R) Works/Money
HP Mobile Remote Control
8 Cell Lithium Ion Battery
Windows(R) XP Home Edition with SP2 Backup CD
No TV Tuner w/remote control

Included Features:
HP PhotoSmart Premier
HP QuickPlay
1 Expansion Port 2 connector
1 ExpressCard/54 Slot (also supports ExpressCard/34)
4 USB 2.0 ports
IEEE 1394
1 Consumer IR (Remote Receiver)
S-video TV-out port
Built in 6-in-1 Digital Media Reader
Built-in Altec Lansing stereo speakers
Touch Pad with dedicated vertical and horizontal Scroll Up/Down pad
101 key compatible
90W AC adapter
1-year limited H/W warranty
90-day S/W warranty

 

http://www.mobilityguru.com/2006/01...is_big_heavy_and_full_of_features/page14.html

Write up on dv8000, on this page they talk about the bios and being able to choose.

 

RE: 3. Is the audio out port an SPDIF or some other digital out?

Here they talk about the digital audio out, showing a picture of the needed adapter.

http://www.mobilityguru.com/2006/01...is_big_heavy_and_full_of_features/page17.html

"Those for whom the built-in stereo speakers don't cut it audio-wise can use the optical digital audio output from the headphone jack to connect to a multi-channel sound system."

 

Here is the Maintance and Service Manual for the dv8000 series. (dated Nov-2005) http://h10032.www1.hp.com/ctg/Manual/c00554540.pdf

Note that the dv8000t is new, so it hasn't been updated with that info, but basiclly they're the same machine... taking it part wise which this manual shows you how to do.

* * * *
Here's an UPDATED one, dated FEB-2006 but still behind as it doesn't cover the dv8000t.. this wasn't there a few days ago: http://h10032.www1.hp.com/ctg/Manual/c00637497.pdf

 

The dv8000z doesn't included the mounting bracket for the second drive when you buy single-drive configurations. I doubt the dv8000t does either. I advise buying the dual 80GB 5400RPM drive configuration for this reason.

DDR2 RAM has higher bandwidth but higher latency. Until you get up to the higher speed grades (at least DDR2-667 and by rights DDR2-800) it doesn't offer much. Since one of AMD's claims to fame is low-latency memory access thanks to their integrated memory controller they avoided the earlier, slower DDR2 grades.

 

Thanks all for your info!

I played with a DV8000t yesterday, and discovered that in the bios I could not specify which drive to boot from. It just had the entry 'Notebook Hard Drive' amongst the other things (eg USB Floppy, CDROM, etc). I suspect one drive is master, one slave, and it won't let you choose which to boot from.

A workaround (and probably faster anyway) is to use a boot manager such as Bootmagic etc

 

My Hp Pavilion dv8000t was delivered the 10th
(Ordered the 3rd, shipped the 7th- 3:54pm)

On the controller for the 2nd SATA drive. It's there. Just hook up a second drive and you're good to go.

On the hard drive bracket.. It's NOT there, but it would be pretty easy to make one if push comes to shove. As of April 11, 2006 there is no part number for the drive frame itself as that part ships with a "new" drive as shipped by HP.

I'm sort of thinking that will be the case 6+ months from now (No seperate part number)...

Good news is it looks like a simple part to make if needed. I surely wouldn't buy the second hard drive from HP for the amount of money they're charging just to get the bracket.

 

Does anyone have an update regarding the digital audio and/or adapter for the dv8000t?

I ordered a dv8000t about a week ago, and I've been trying to read the forums and figure out how to access the S/PDIF digital audio from the headphone jack.

I called HP and talked to a sales person, who looked at the mobilityguru review ( http://www.mobilityguru.com/2006/01/11/hp_pavilion_dv8000z_is_big_heavy_and_full_of_features/page17.html ) while I was on the phone, and they had no idea. They suggested that I call tech support.

Is there an adapter included in the box? Or are they trying to get people to buy the xc2000 cable?

 

Hi moosor...re: your last question, there is no adapter included in the box, so you will have to buy a separate cable. Good news though is that the cable is super cheap. You can go as cheap as a $5 Phillips toslink cable with mini-plug adapters @ Wallymart. But ideally you'll want something like this:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00003CWA9/sr=8-1/qid=1147059210/ref=pd_bbs_1/104-1948478-7215902?%5Fencoding=UTF8

Granted Monster is high end, but you get an idea of what cable is needed.

It works great, btw, when you hook it up to a proper receiver or speaker system with optical inputs (e.g. Logitech z5500, which I use). Great clear sound, no hiss).

 

Thanks! I didn't know that kind of cable exists.

My dv8000t just shipped this AM - looking forward to it.

 

Can anyone confirm that cable works?

This page at Costco says that you can get SPDIF out of the headphone jack (instead of optical like the cable above). Has anyone seen this work?

That would be cool, since you could go much longer lengths. All you would need is something like this:

http://www.ramelectronics.net/html/RCA-mini-spdif.html

 

rezonat0r, I think you're right. I emailed HP, and here is their reply:

-----
You may use a RCA to 3.5mm (1/8") mini S/PDIF Cables for the same.
Please visit the following Web site for more information about the
cable:

http://www.ramelectronics.net/html/RCA-mini-spdif.html#rcabnc
-----

The same link that you posted! So, unless you work for HP and sent me that email, I'm going to assume that the headphone jack does NOT use an optical signal (although I have seen optical headphone jacks in other laptops), and that a mini S/PDIF cable is the way to go.

I'll try to get one this weekend and see if it works, and I'll post the results.

Thanks

 

Thanks for looking into this moosor! Nope, I don't work for HP

But that is really cool. I'll take SPDIF over optical any day. I should be getting my dv8000t soon and I'll report back as well...

 

The headphone jack is capable of digital out, whether it be converted to optical or SPDIF/coax from the mini-plug. You just need to get the right cable. I personally have it hooked up via optical, but you can just as easily buy a different cable for SPDIF/coax. The important thing to note is that the headphone out is capable of outputting a digital signal either way.

 

Thanks DrewN - you're right. I got it to work using the optical method, but I haven't had any luck with the coaxial method.

I was actually just looking back over this thread last night and noticed that you said that you were using optical and that you had it working. Hadn't noticed that sentence previously. Also, I thought you should be able to see the red light in the headphone jack (due to posts about other brands of laptops), but this was not the case, and I therefore was doubting the optical method.

So, I decided to try out the optical connection route. My local Radio Shack said they didn't carry the mini-Toslink adaptors anymore, so I stopped by Circuit City just to see if they had one (I was too impatient to order online). The salesmen there of course had no idea what I was talking about, but I found a GE optical cable (GE AV22649 - http://www.audiooutfitter.com/store/AV22649.html ) in the very back, behind all the Monster Cables, that just happened to come with 2 mini-Toslink adaptors in the box.

As soon as I plugged in the optical cable, with the mini-Tos adaptor, to the mini-plug headphone jack, the red light appeared at the other end. Success!

I haven't had luck with the coaxial method, however. Following the directions given by HP, I bought a 1/8" (3.5mm) mono plug at Radio Shack ( http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2062459&cp ), which I then attached to an RCA cable (male at both ends). Doesn't seem to work. I thought maybe the cable that I had created may be the problem, so I tested it out on my portable DVD player, which uses a mini-plug for Digital coaxial audio out. Worked like a charm for the portable DVD player.

So, does the coaxial method really work? Maybe I'm just messing it up somehow. Of course, one could also opt to buy the very expensive HP xc2000 cable, which has an SPDIF coaxial RCA plug on it.

Can anyone confirm that they have been able to get a SPDIF digital audio signal out of the headphone mini-plug using a coaxial cable on the dv8000t?